Ice Cream Confessions
by stanaticfanatic
Summary: Fill for tumblr prompt. Kate wakes up in the middle of the night and finds Alexis eating ice cream and she has something she needs to talk about - but it's Kate that ends up surprised. Kinda cute and fluffy with a bit of drama - now complete.
1. Chapter 1

**A/N: must be a writing weekend - three chapters of Seeing Double added so far and now this! Fill for a tumblr prompt which I saw on castlefanficprompts, I'll post the prompt at the end to avoid too many spoilers.**

* * *

Rolling away from Castle in bed, Kate glanced at the clock and saw it was almost three am. She groaned quietly to herself at being awake at such a stupid hour, especially given the _activities_ her and Castle had got up to before bed. She smiled at the memory, even now he still managed to suprise her.

They'd been married for 6 weeks now and it was everything she could have hoped for. Their wedding day had been perfect and the honeymoon had been incredible, they'd both been sad to leave and come back to reality. But she had her job here and although Castle could write from anywhere, she knew he missed Alexis. Kate had missed her too, they'd not always seen eye to eye where Castle was concerned, but the two of them had had a talk the day before the wedding and they were much closer now, which Beckett liked. Having a teenaged stepdaughter wasn't something she ever imagined happening but she wouldn't change it for the world.

Kate looked over at her husband, seeing he was still fast asleep, hair ruffled in that way that made him so adorbale. She stared at him for a few seconds, before climbing quietly out of bed and padding to the door, thinking hot chocolate might help her sleep. With one last look at her sleeping husband, she smiled and walked through the office and out into the lounge, heading for the kitchen. She was surprised to see the light on and Alexis sat with her back to her, hunched over what looked like a bowl.

"Couldn't sleep either, hey?" Kate asked heading into the kitchen, grateful she had slipped her underwear and an oversized t-shirt of Castle's on before going to sleep. Alexis jumped at Kate's voice, having not heard her come through to the kitchen. "Sorry, didn't mean to make you- hey, what's up?" Kate asked, noticing the ice cream and Alexis' red, puffy eyes.

"Nothing, I'm fine," Alexis said, going back to her ice cream. She hadn't expected to get caught.

"Alexis honey, I know I'm not your dad but I can still tell that something's up," Kate said, "you're sitting out here at three in the morning with a bowl of mint chocolate chip ice cream and you've been crying. You wanna talk about it?"

"No. Yes. Oh god, I don't know!" Alexis cried.

"Okay, well while you decide would you mind if I joined you?"

"Be my guest," Alexis sniffled, taking another spoonful of ice cream.

Kate dug the chocolate fudge brownie ice cream out of the freezer and scooped some into a bowl, sitting down opposite Alexis.

"Sweetie," Kate began, "I know I'm not your mom but you know you can talk to me about anything, right?"

"Even if I don't wanna tell dad?"

"_Especially_ if you don't want to tell your dad. What are stepmothers for, hey?"

"Are we asking generically or actually? Because in Gina's case it would be to push me out of the way whenever possible and pretend I didn't exist. And if you read the fairytales then they're there to be evil and make you clean the floor with a toothbrush and things."

"Okay. Should have guessed you'd have an answer for that just like your father would!" Kate laughed. "But no, what I meant is that I'm here if you don't wanna talk to your dad, or your grams."

"And you won't tell them?"

"Of course I won't," Kate frowned, unsure of where this was going. "But if it's something illegal then you probably shouldn't tell me.."

"It's nothing illegal," Alexis reassured. "Can I let you in on a secret?"

"Sure," Kate said, spooning chocolate ice cream into her mouth. It was missing something.. Glancing around the kitchen, she realised what it was she was after - olives.

"Uh, Kate? What are you doing?" Alexis asked, as Kate grabbed the olives from the fridge and sprinkled them into her ice cream.

"Not sure, just felt right," Kate said, seemingly confused at her own actions. Eating another spoonful, she moaned around it, the taste exactly what she was after.

"Right, well this uh, _problem_ of mine..the first thing I thought was that I wanted my mom. So I uh, picked up the phone to call her and found myself staring at your number instead. And then it hit me - I didn't want my _mother_, I wanted you."

Beckett almost cried. _Goddammit, why was she so emotional_? "Alexis..honey you know you can call me anytime! I'll always be here for you, no matter the time, okay?"

"Yeah, I know..I just, it felt weird when I thought I wanted my mom but then I kinda figured that you're more of a mom to me than Meredith is and I think that's why I didn't call you, because I'd never really felt that before...god, is that even okay with you? I mean I know you love my dad and everything-"

"Alexis, stop," Kate interrupted. "Yes, I love your dad and part of loving your dad is you. I've always known that and it's absolutely fine with me, I love you too, you know, not just your dad."

"Okay, cool..cause er, you wouldn't be the first to use me to get to my dad but I know you're not like that..god, I don't think I've ever seen anyone look at my dad like you do, not even my mo- not even Meredith."

"It's okay to still call her mom, you know."

"Yeah I know..I just feel like she's more of a crazy auntie who drops by every now and then. She might be my mother but as far as I'm concerned you're my mom."

Kate almost cried again. _Dammit, what was up with her?_ "Okay, so um..you wanna tell me what's up?"

"I think I'm pregnant," Alexis blurted out and Kate's eyes widened in shock. "Oh god, please don't tell my dad.."

"Hey, I'm not going to tell him, okay? I'm just a little shocked, that's all..you've always been so responsible and mature for your age, I guess I just never thought you were just a 20 year old girl in there!"

"I know, I know, and I know you probably think the same as my dad that I'm all innocent and still his little girl but-"

"Alexis, I was your age once, you know. I am under no illusions that you are innocent or naïve about things such as sex. I am fully aware of your dad's views on the matter, but did he really think you moved in with Pi and had separate bedrooms?"

"You know, I actually think that's what he thinks," Alexis chuckled. "But I'm not going to tell him otherwise, especially not with the way things were between us when I moved in with Pi."

"So uh..oh god, I don't want you to take this the wrong way but um, if you _are_ pregnant, is it uh.."

"No," Alexis said and Kate was shocked at how sure she sounded. "It's not Pi's. We uh..well let's just say things weren't very satisfactory in that department," Alexis admitted, blushing slightly.

"Sweetie, wanting good sex is nothing to be ashamed of," Kate laughed. "And I won't go into details because I'm sure you don't need them-"

"About my parents having sex? No, thank you. Aren't you like too old for that now anyway?" Alexis teased.

"Well, your dad might be.." Kate laughed, joining in on the teasing when he wasn't here to defend himself. And she hadn't missed the way Alexis had said 'my parents' either. "But no, Pi and I didn't really match in that respect..he was very selfish if you get what I mean."

"Oh god, yeah I get what you mean! It's one of the things I love about your dad-" she broke off at Alexis' scrunched up nose. "Right, too much information, sorry. So um, if you are pregnant, who's is it?"

"I uh, may have um, had a one night stand a few weeks back..at a party when I was drunk.."

"Honestly Alexis, if you knew half the things I got up to when I was your age you certainly wouldn't be worried about telling me you had a one night stand. And you're in college - it's perfectly normal and as long as it was consensual then I don't see the problem. Well, apart from the obvious one we're faced with.."

"Oh god, yeah it was consensual, I wasn't _that_ drunk. Sorry, I sometimes forget that you're a cop and you see these things from a different point of view!"

"No, I guess I just worry about you sometimes..I know what it's like being a young girl in this city!"

"Can I ask you a kind of personal question?" Alexis asked shyly.

"You can ask me anything, Alexis, anything you want."

"Erm..have you ever been in a situation like..this?"

"Where I thought I could be pregnant?" Alexis nodded. "Yeah, I have. A few times actually and it's not something I'm terribly proud of. I'm not saying it's your fault or anything, but I'm assuming you're on some kind of birth control?" Alexis nodded again. "And I know sometimes it's possible to forget to take it, god knows I have when I was caught up with work..not that I had a reason to be taking it most of the time..but anyway, when I had these scares it was a result of my own reckless behaviour. After my mom died I was a mess and I had three in the year after she died but I had one before she died too."

"Did you tell her?"

"Yeah..I practically told her everything so it would have been weird not to. I never told my dad though, he was a bit like Castle is with you, still is actually.."

"And what did she do?" Alexis asked, it wasn't often Kate opened up about her mother.

"She took me to the chemist and we got a test and she sat there with me whilst we waited for the result. And the three times after she died that I did that I was on my own and that's why I'm going to do this with you, waiting there knowing my mom was there whatever the outcome was a hell of a lot more comforting than being a twenty year old girl with no one to talk to."

"Oh god, no I didn't expect you to do that or anything..I just..I wanted to tell you, cause I er, can't really tell my dad.."

"Alexis, we're in this together now, okay? And having been in your situation, I can promise you it'll be better having someone with you, okay?"

"Well um..if you're sure.."

"Of course I am. Now, how late are you?"

"Um, about three weeks.." Alexis admitted. "And it's been like 7 since that party so um..yeah.."

"Okay, well it's probably just a false alarm, you've been under a lot of pressure with college exams and stuff so I'm sure it's nothing to worry about."

"And if it is?" Alexis asked quietly. "If I am pregnant?"

"Well then you have options. And I can promise you that whatever happens I'm going to be here and tour dad will be too."

"Oh god..he's going to be so disappointed!"

"Sweetie, he could never be disappointed in you, okay? You're beautiful and intelligent and I know he's incredibly proud of you."

"But I'm in college, I can't have a baby!"

"Well why don't we wait and see the result of this test first, no point in worrying when you don't need to, hey?"

"Okay," Alexis agreed, "um..thank you. For everything..I was wondering how I was going to tell you but I guess it just came out and uh, yeah I really appreciate it."

"Not a problem, kid, you're stuck with me now so you better get used to it," Kate smiled at her, "now, think you can some sleep? Your dad's got a meeting with Paula and Gina tomorrow morning, so we can go to the pharmacy then if you like?"

"Er, yeah, I guess.."

"The sooner we do this, the sooner you can know. It'll be fine, I promise."

"Okay," Alexis mumbled, throwing herself into Kate's arms.

Kate wrapped her arms around Alexis, hugging her tightly, before watching her head up the stairs to bed. Kate knew how Alexis felt about telling Castle, it was probably fairly similar to the way she had felt when she was in the same situation all those years ago. Both of them were daddy's girls at heart, but she knew no matter the result of the test, Castle would stand by Alexis.

* * *

Kate pretended she was still asleep when Castle left early the next morning, it was a Saturday so she didn't need to be at the precinct and she couldn't face lying to Castle if he happened to ask if anything was wrong.

Once she heard the front door click shut, she climbed out of bed and into the shower, emerging half an hour later ready for the day. She found Alexis in the kitchen once again, sans ice cream this time.

"Morning sweetie," she greeted, "you want breakfast?"

"No, I'm too nervous to eat," Alexis said, a nervous laugh escaping too.

"Okay, well you wanna go then?"

"Uh..yeah.."

"Hey, everything is going to fine, I promise. And you know me, I don't make promises I can't keep." Kate told her, the two of them heading out of the door.

They returned an hour later, four pregnancy tests in the bag.

"Why did you get four?" Alexis asked in a panic.

"Because I'm doing two with you. If you want, that is..I just thought you might feel a little more comfortable.."

"Yeah..that would help actually."

"Okay, so take these up to your bathroom, follow the instructions on the box and come back down. We have to leave them for a few minutes before they tell us anything."

Alexis did as Kate said, disappearing up the stairs as Kate went into the bathroom too, taking the tests with her. She was worried about what Alexis' would say..she had tried reassuring her that it was probably just a false alarm but there was a chance it wouldn't be and Castle was about to become a grandfather. Well. After what Alexis had said last night, she could be about to become a grandmother. God, she was too young for this.

Emerging a couple of minutes later, she saw Alexis pacing the living room, tests placed on the coffee table. She put her two at the other end and sat down on the couch, checking the time on her watch.

The next 2 minutes passed like they were counting two hours. Finally, it was time to look and they picked up their tests at the same time.

"Oh thank god," Alexis said, breathing a sigh of relief and Kate looked up to see a huge grin on the girls face. "They're negative," she announced. "What's up? Shouldn't you be telling me to be more careful next time or something?"

Kate flipped her tests round so that Alexis could see them. "Mine are positive - I'm pregnant."

* * *

**Prompt: **

_"Kate wakes up in the middle of the night to find the kitchen's light turned up. Alexis is there eating a huge bowl of ice cream and it looks like she was crying. Turns out that Alexis thinks she is pregnant but is afraid to take the test. Beckett talks to her and tells her about her past and convinces her to take the test and the consequences." Cliche plot twist... Kate also takes a pregnancy test, to be reassuring and all that, but hers IS positive_

**A/N: ****so this was just a little fluffy one-shot and I hope enjoyed it! Reviews are more than welcome, they make me very happy!**


	2. Chapter 2

**A/N: so this was originally going to be a one-shot but after a couple of people suggested I keep going, I've changed my mind. It'll probably only be a few chapters, but I saw where I could go with it and decided to carry on :)**

* * *

_Kate flipped her tests round so that Alexis could see them. "Mine are positive - I'm pregnant."_

* * *

"You're..pregnant?" Alexis asked, her grin turning to confusion. "I didn't even know you were-"

"What, having sex?" Kate asked, her laugh one of disbelief and shock.

"I was _going_ to say trying for a baby.." Alexis muttered, her cheeks flaming at the thought of her parents having sex. _Ew_.

"We're um..we're not.." Kate clarified. Oh god, what was she going to do? She was _pregnant_. With child. Knocked up. Up the duff. However you wanted to put it, in roughly 8 or so months, her and Castle were going to have a son or daughter. _Oh shit_.

"Kate?" Alexis asked, sounding worried, "are you okay? You've gone really pale..perhaps you should sit down?" She suggested, following Kate as she walked to the sofa and sat down with a thud. Judging by her reaction, this had been a complete surprise to her. The whole 'olives on the ice cream' thing made sense now though..

"I uh..I'm fine, I think.." She muttered, staring down at the tests still grasped firmly in her hands. "Well," she said, "at least you're not pregnant as well, that could have happened I guess." She was trying to find the humour in the situation, just like Castle would. Oh _crap_ - Castle. "How the hell am I going to tell your dad?" She whispered, turning to her twenty-year-old step-daughter for advice. Desperate times and all that.

Alexis actually laughed at that. "Trust me, I think he's going to be a hell of a lot happier that you're pregnant than me!"

"Yeah..but we've only just got married!" Kate exclaimed. "Well at least he doesn't have to bring the wedding forward because he got me- shit, I'm sorry Alexis, I wasn't thinking.." Beckett blushed, realising what she'd just said - Castle had married Meredith because she was pregnant - with the girl sat next to her.

"Don't worry about it, I know my dad loves me even though he doesn't love my mom and none of it was my fault and all that," she brushed it off with a wave of her hand and Kate smiled. She really was a great kid.

"I just..I don't even know if he wants kids! _Oh fuck_..this is so not happening!"

"Kate - my dad loves you, more than anyone he's ever met and I'm positive that he is giving to be over the moon at this, honestly."

"Jesus Alexis, this isn't even your problem..you should have to listen-"

"Stop. You were there for me when I thought I was pregnant and yes, I know you're a grown woman with a husband, but this is still unexpected news, I can call Lanie over though, if you want?"

"No, it's okay," Kate sighed, "I think we should keep it in the family until we know more.." She looked up to find Alexis grinning at her. "What?" She asked.

"Oh..it's just you said 'family' and uh, I guess you were including me in that.."

"Of course I was, didn't we sort that out last night?!" Beckett said, rolling her eyes.

"So uh..how are you going to tell dad?"

"Oh hell if I know. I've never even been in a relationship this serious before..I'm a one and done kinda girl..but having a baby when we haven't really talked about it? Oh god, what if he doesn't want to be married to me anymore?!"

"Is it some weird hormone thing making you speak crap?" Alexis asked and Kate stared at her. "It what universe would my dad not want you? You could grow an extra head and put on four stone and he'd still think you were the most beautiful woman he'd ever seen."

"So wise for someone so young," Kate grumbled. The girl had a point - surely a baby wouldn't make Castle change his mind. "But I am going to put on four stone..oh god, I'm going to get fat!" She half-cried. She was happy with her figure, what if she ended up looking like a beached whale?!

"You're going to look pregnant, Kate, not fat," Alexis laughed. She had to admit, it was kinda nice seeing the normally composed Kate Beckett well, not so composed, proved she really was human after all. "So, I think you should tell dad and then the two of you can see a doctor and have a scan and get all googly-eyed over a picture of something that only just resembles a baby."

"You're right, he needs to know..I'm just not sure how to approach it.."

* * *

Kate was still sat on the sofa, positive pregnancy tests now placed in the drawer on the coffee table for now. Alexis had left her to it, heading out to meet friends - Castle was due back soon and she wanted to give them some time to talk.

Beckett appreciated that, she knew how close Castle and Alexis were so the fact that the youngster was giving them time alone meant something. She had also given Kate permission to tell Castle _how_ she found out she was pregnant, stating that Castle had to learn she was grown up sometime, so why not now. Beckett secretly thought Alexis was hoping that Castle learning he was going to become a father again would eclipse the fact that his eldest was a woman now.

Hearing the turn of the key in the lock, she took a deep breath and waited for him.

"Kate!" He exclaimed, bounding over to her like a child who had just been told they could have a puppy. "So glad you're here - I have news!" He said, leaning in to kiss her deeply. Oh god, she loved him so much. She parted her lips, allowing his tongue entry and her breath caught as it collided with hers. He groaned into her mouth, hands creeping up to tangle in her hair as hers roamed over the front of his shirt.

But she had to talk to him before they could do _that_. Well, that was why there were here to begin with. "Hi," she panted shyly, pulling back slightly.

"Think I might go to book meetings more often if that's the welcome home I get," he grinned, stealing another kiss.

"Mm, well..we have to talk.." She said, seeing the panic wash across his face.

"What is it? Are you okay? Alexis? Mother?"

"Everyone's fine, Castle, do you think I would have kissed you like that if something serious had happened?"

"Well I don't know, I get a little fuzzy when you do things like that with your tongue," he pouted and she couldn't help but laugh at him. "So, what do we need to talk about?"

"Nope, you first. Mine is bound to be bigger so I'm saving it until after your news," she smiled with a wink.

"Ah, I like it - leaving the biggest christmas present until last - I taught you well!" He said gleefully and she laughed again. "Okay, so you know how I was at a book meeting with Paula and Gina?" She nodded. "Weeeeelll..they said Black Pawn want me to write five more Nikki Heat books!" He blurted out quickly, grinning from ear to ear. "Five! Can you believe it?!"

"Castle - that's amazing! I'm so happy for you!" She said, hugging him tightly.

"Happy for _us_, Kate. Without you, there would be no Nikki Heat and besides, we're married now - everything is _ours_."

"Everything?" She asked timidly, hoping he meant it given what she was about to tell him.

"Of course..why?"

"Because now it's time for my news," she said, nerves bubbling low in her stomach. "I uh..so last night I woke up at 3am and decided to get hot chocolate to help me sleep," she began.

"What, that's your news?" He teased, "come on, Beckett, you can do better than that!"

"Shut up," she said, swatting him playfully on the arm. "No, there's more. So I came out here and saw Alexis sat in the kitchen eating ice cream and she'd been crying," he went to speak but she stopped him, "she's fine, don't worry, just a little panic. So, I wanted to check she was alright so I joined her for ice cream..at three am, I know."

"That's my girls," he muttered and she grinned, she should have known he'd be proud of that.

"Anyway, she admitted to me that she thought she was pregnant - which she's not," she clarified before he could throw a hissy fit. "Just a false alarm, exam stress and everything I'm guessing, we did tests this morning."

"Wait, you went with her to get the tests and stayed with her?" He asked and she nodded. "Oh wow, thank you, Kate," he said, pulling her into his arms. "You have no idea how much that means to me..I'm not going to dwell on the fact that my little girl could have been pregnant, I'm sure you spoke to her about that?" He felt her nod against his chest. "But thank you, for being there for her. I know it must be hard for her with girly things like that..not having her mom around but you went above and beyond-"

"Castle, stop," she said, pulling away from him and sitting up to face him. "She's practically my daughter - and before you interrupt, yes, we had that conversation last night, - and I couldn't have done anything other than be with her. But that's not what I wanted to tell you.."

"Okay okay, carry on," he grumbled.

"Right, well to make her feel more comfortable, I did the tests too.." She paused, waiting for the penny to drop. She saw when it did, his eyes widened and a tentative grin appeared on his face.

"Wait..are we..?"

"Yes," she said, "Castle - I'm pregnant."

"I..you're pregnant?"

She nodded, waiting for it to sink in a bit more.

"Oh wow, Kate!" He said excitedly, pulling her into his arms once again. "That's amazing news!"

"You're not mad?" She mumbled against his chest and he pulled back to look at her.

"Mad? Why would I be mad?"

"Because we've only just got married..we haven't even talked about it.." She said half-heartedly.

"You think that matters?" He said, still sounding like an excited kid. "Oh Kate, I don't care about that! Wait, how do you feel about it?" He asked his grin turning to a frown.

"I uh.." She hadn't really thought about it. "Fine, I guess...to be honest I think I was just more worried about what you were going to say. If it's fine by you then I'm happy."

"Great! Oh my god, Kate - we're having a baby!" He squealed and she couldn't help but laugh at him. "Seriously, you might need to pinch me or something because I'm having a baby with the most incredible woman I've ever met and I think I'm dreaming!"

"Nope, not dreaming, Castle - look," she pulled the tests out of the drawer and handed them to him.

"Oh wow, can we frame these or something?" He asked and she grinned. She should have known this would be his reaction, she really didn't know what she had been worried about.

"We can do whatever you want with them," she smiled and he leaned in to kiss her again.

"I love you, Kate Beckett Castle," he mumbled into her lips.

"I love you too, Richard Castle," she replied with a grin. "And we're having a baby!" Now that she knew he was happy about it, her nerves were quickly turning to excitement. It was unexpected, but that's usually how life with Castle ended up - and now they were having a baby, she couldn't be happier.

* * *

**A/N: so now Castle knows, yay! I think I might do one more chapter because it's been quite fun..might stretch it into two more, with a time jump from 3-4 so we get to the actual giving birth and naming it. Sound good?**

** twitter - holaitsjade | tumblr - stanaabanana**


	3. Chapter 3

**A/N: thank you to the two reviewers who pointed out they were married in chapter one and not chapter two..oops! Think I managed to sort it out, my only defence is that when I'm writing more than one story, I sometimes mix them up in my head, not to mention the amount of ideas for other stories I have floating around too!**

**Please note: there are time jumps in this chapter, as it covers quite a large time period, but I will outline where we are when it comes to it :)**

* * *

"You ready?" Castle asked, giving her hand a reassuring squeeze.

"Yeah," she smile back at him, taking a deep breath. They were sat in the waiting room at their doctors surgery, waiting to be called in. The day after Kate had told Rick she was pregnant, he had called and made an appointment, so they could determine how far along she was, meaning they could arrange a scan.

"Katherine Rogers?" The doctor called, appearing in the witting room. Kate stood up, closely followed by Rick. They had decided on the use of Castle's birth name for now, hoping there was less of a chance of a leak with less people knowing that name. They should be okay though, they were planning on telling friends and family after their twelve week scan, and the tabloids weren't allowed to print a story saying she was pregnant, as long as they admitted it. However, they didn't really want the people at the paper knowing before they had the all clear, so Rogers it was.

"Hi," the doctor said with a smile. "Please, take a seat " she said, gesturing towards the chairs on the side of her desk. "It's good to see you, Kate, I didn't realise it was you until I saw you - the name has changed!" Her doctor said. She'd been coming to see this doctor since she was in her early twenties. Dr Carter had only just graduated when Kate first saw her, so there wasn't a huge difference in their ages.

"That would be down to me," Castle said with a smile. "I'm Rick, Kate's husband."

"Hm, I thought you looked familiar - it's not Rogers, is it?"

Kate laughed, she should have known her doctor would figure it out, they'd had many a discussion about his books during some of her appointments. "Got it in one, Dr Carter, meet my husband - Richard Castle."

"Well congratulations, I'm very happy for you both. So, what can I do for you today?"

"I um.." Kate didn't want to say it out loud, fearing it would somehow make it all disappear. She felt Rick squeeze her hand again and she carried on. "I think I'm pregnant."

"Great! I'm assuming you've taken a test?"

Kate nodded. "Two," she said, "they were both positive."

"Okay, well if I can get you to do a urine sample, I can confirm it for sure," Dr Carter told her with a smile, handing her a small testing bottle. "Bathroom is just through there, you just need to half fill it, okay?"

Kate nodded and followed where the doctor had pointed. She emerged a few minutes later with a bottle of her own urine and she handed it back to the doctor, who took off the lid and placed a small drop onto the lab strip she had prepared. A few minutes later, she turned back to Kate and Castle, who were anxiously waiting to see what she said.

"You're definitely pregnant," she revealed with a smile. "Congratulations, I take it this is your first?"

"My first, his second, Alexis is twenty now," Kate told her, "oh wow..I mean we kinda figured I was when we did the tests at home but hearing it now.."

"Makes it real, doesn't it?" Castle said looking at Kate with such a look of adoration that she almost forgot where she was and kissed him senseless.

"Yeah, it does," she replied breathlessly. "So what happens now?"

"Well do you have any idea of how far along you could be? I'm happy to do a blood test, but the results won't be in for a few days. If we can work out roughly how far along you are, we can get you in for an ultrasound at roughly twelve weeks, the sonographer will be able to tell you more then."

After counting back as far as she could remember, they deduced that she was roughly 6 weeks gone - meaning they had possibly conceived on their wedding night or early in the honeymoon. It was seven weeks tomorrow since they got married..they just never knew they were making a baby too! The doctor had given her leaflets for early pregnancy, vitamins she could take and what changes to expect with her body, and they had an ultrasound arranged for six weeks time - when they would be able to see their baby for the first time.

* * *

**(Weeks 6-12)**

The next six weeks were hard - Alexis knew, but she was the only one. They hadn't told Martha or Jim, nor the boys and Lanie, they were waiting for the twelve week scan before they said anything, they didn't want to jinx it - not that Kate believed in things like that, oh no, that was all Castle.

Castle had become increasingly protective - making sure she wasn't going first into dangerous situations, making sure she was as least stressed as possible and it was driving Kate insane. She cornered him about it, somewhere around week 10.

"Castle, you have to stop! I'm perfectly fine and if you carry on like this then the boys or Lanie are going to notice that something is up!" She hissed at him in the break room one afternoon.

"Kate, I'm just worried about you," he replied calmly. "You're carrying my baby in there too and I'm looking out for both of you."

"Castle, I am 10 weeks gone. I don't even have a visible bump yet!" They had been lucky with trying to hide it, although she had a slight bump when she wasn't wearing any clothes, most of her work shirts still covered it enough for no one to notice.

"I just don't want anything happening to you - or to the baby!"

"Don't you dare make me feel guilty Richard Castle!" She was not going to let him use their baby against her in this. "You heard the doctor, I can still work. I am not quitting my job so I can use you as my sugar-daddy."

"But you don't _have_ to work, Kate. I know you love your job but it's dangerous - you were shot once, remember? All I'm asking is that you take it easy. And if that means I go to Gates then so be it."

"You wouldn't dare.."

"Okay no, I wouldn't because you have a gun and it's a little scary but please, don't do more than you should!" Kate rolled her eyes, he was so dramatic sometimes. If he had it his way, she'd be at home in bed everyday with him bringing her everything she needed.

"Castle, I appreciate your concern but I'm fine, we're both fine, okay? And I promise you, the second it gets too much I'll stop. I'll take maternity leave and stay at home until the baby is born." They still hadn't come to a decision on what would happen after the baby was born, she wanted to spend as much time as possible with the baby but she didn't want to quit her job.

He relented, dropping it for now with her promise that she'd not do too much. He still worried though, every time they went into a crime scene, wondering if they'd find their suspect with a gun or a knife.

As much as it was annoying Kate for him to be like this, she did appreciate it. It was nice to see how much he cared, not that she could have ever doubted it, but it was lovely.

* * *

**(Week 12)**

They made it to week 12 and the day of their ultrasound without her shooting him, which was a miracle in itself. She'd told the boys that they wouldn't be in until lunchtime - they were having the scan and then telling Jim and Martha before Lanie and the others.

They were currently in the little ultrasound room, Kate led on the bed and Rick sat on the chair next to her, their hands entwined, patiently waiting for the doctor to come and do their scan.

"It's going to be fine," he reassured her quietly. He wasn't too sure why she was so worried, they'd had no indication that this wasn't a perfectly normal pregnancy.

"I know..I'm just.." She paused, unsure of how she wanted to word what she was trying to say. "I guess I'm just worried..I mean, this was a complete surprise. We hadn't planned this at all and don't get me wrong, I'm ecstatic at having a baby with you..I just think I'd be a little less tense if we had actually planned it and had time to get used to the idea."

"Mm, and if you weren't so insatiable then maybe we would have been able to do that," he teased, trying to get her mind off of her worries.

"Excuse me, Mr Castle, if I remember correctly it was _you_ who insisted we spend an entire day of our honeymoon in bed."

"Yes - to relax and talk and eat breakfast and cuddle. I never said anything about sex!"

"Oh really? So you won't mind if I enforce a no-sex policy until after the baby then?"

"But Kate," he whined, "that's like 6 months until you have the baby..and then-"

"Relax, Castle," she laughed, "I was joking." Like she could go that long without him.

"You're evil," he pouted.

"But you love me anyway," she replied in a sing-song voice.

"I do," he smiled, "more and more everyday."

"You're such a sap," she laughed.

"Hi folks, I'm Dr Parker," the doctor said as he came into the room. "Sorry for the wait, busy day today! So, you're here for your twelve week scan?" He said, glancing through her notes.

"Yep, we are indeed," Castle said, barely containing his excitement at seeing their baby for the first time.

"Well, dad's excited then!" Dr Parker said, "and how's mom doing, you okay?"

"I'm good..just..I'll feel a little better when I know our baby's okay.." Kate replied nervously.

"Well let's get started then," he said, sitting down at the machine next to the bed Kate was lying on. "This will be a little cold.." He squirted a small amount of gel onto her stomach and Kate shivered at the feel. Pressing the scanner onto her abdomen, he spread the gel around and searched for the baby.

A few moments later, he smiled and Kate let out a breath she didn't know she'd been holding. "There we go," he said, turning the monitor round so that they could see. "There's your baby," he pointed out the tiniest little bean-sized spot and Kate knew she was a goner.

"That's..our baby," she whispered, tears threatening to spill over. She glanced at Castle and he had the biggest grin on his face she thought she'd ever seen. "Look, Castle - we made that!"

"Everything seems fine," Dr Parker said, "strong heartbeat and a normal size for it's age - I'd say you're bang on twelve weeks."

"Definitely a honeymoon baby then," Castle chuckled.

"Oh you've not been married long?" The doctor asked in surprise. "Sorry, not my place..just, I don't think I've ever seen a couple as perfect as you two in..well, ever. I figured you'd been together for a lot longer than that!"

"It took four years of me harassing her at work everyday but she gave in eventually," Castle grinned. "Can we get a picture?"

"Of course, I'll get you both one each and would you like a couple for family?"

"Oh, please," Kate said, "my dad would love one!"

"Mother would too, I imagine," Castle said, still in awe. That was his little baby..he was having a baby with the woman of his dreams..it didn't get much better than this.

"Great, I'll get you some printed out, and then we can get you booked in for your next scan. I'll just let you know - at the 20 week scan we can usually tell the sex of the baby, so have a think over the next eight weeks and see if you can decide if you want to know."

"I can't believe it," Kate said, turning to face her husband. "I was so worried I'd feel nothing but..god, I can't even describe how I feel right now and it's only a teeny tiny little thing!"

"I love you," Castle whispered, "so much."

"I love you too," she replied with a smile, leaning in to kiss him lightly.

* * *

After booking their next scan and getting the print outs, they left hand in had, ready to meet Jim and Martha. They had invited Jim over to the loft, deciding to tell them both there at the same time. Alexis would be home too, and she was excited at finally being able to talk about it.

Arriving home, they found the three of them waiting, both Jim and Martha confused as to why they were there.

"Hey guys," Kate said, failing to stop her grin. "Thanks for coming over."

"Is everything okay Katie?" Her father asked.

"Everything's fine, Jim," Castle reassured. "Actually, it's more than fine..want to do he honours Kate?"

"Dad..Martha..and uh, Alexis, I guess," she added, winking at her step-daughter, "we have some news - I'm pregnant!"

"Oh Katherine, that's wonderful news!" Martha exclaimed, jumping up to hug her daughter in law, "oh congratulations, both of you!" She moved over to hug Castle too.

"Dad?" Kate asked, "are you..okay?"

"Yeah I'm fine, Katie..just..my little girl is having a baby! It's a little overwhelming."

"Oh daddy," she whispered, hugging her father. "But you're happy, right?"

"Of course I am, I'm so happy for the both of you..I've been waiting for grandchildren, well I already have one," he said, gesturing towards Alexis who beamed at him, "but at least I'll have the chance to spoil this one and be there for his or her learning to walk and talk.."

"Yes, Alexis is rather skilled at those already," Castle joked.

"I'm so happy for you..again," Alexis said, giving both Kate and her father hugs. "And um, rather you than me," Alexis whispered to Kate.

"Well I'm gonna need your help anyway, kid," Kate said, "how on earth do you expect me to stop your father wanting to call it Cosmo?"

"Right, so I get final veto on the name?" Alexis asked.

"Yes," Kate said at the same time Castle began to protest.

"I don't like it when you gang up on me," he pouted.

Kate laughed at her completely adorable husband. "Oh here," she said to her dad and Martha, "we got you pictures." She fished them out of her bag, handing them over.

"Oh Katie, I'm so pleased for you!" Jim said, "you're going to make an amazing mother and any child of Rick's is bound to be a lot of fun!"

"Yeah, or a handful," Kate grumbled.

"Karma, my dear," he father said, "you were a complete nightmare as a toddler, I can only imagine what any child of yours will be like!"

"Yes well, as much as I'd love to hear about how I was as a child, we need to get to work. I got the morning off for the scan, but I said we'd be in this afternoon. Dad, you're more than welcome to stay for a while, I know Alexis wanted to talk about college work if that's okay?"

"Of course it is," Jim said to Alexis, "gotta make sure grandchild number one gets on the right track before number two comes along!"

Kate smiled at her little family. Since her conversation with Alexis about mothers, her father had practically adopted her as a grandchild and Alexis had confided that she was delighted, she'd never had a grandfather before and the two of them got on like a house on fire.

"Come on, Mrs Castle," Rick said, ushering her towards the door. "We've got some detectives and a medical examiner to see."

* * *

Arriving at the precinct, they headed to the morgue to grab Lanie before bringing her up to the homicide floor, leading her, Esposito and Ryan into the break room without giving anything away.

"Beckett, what's going on?" Espo asked. "In case you hadn't realised on your morning of not coming in, we actually do have work to do."

"Oh shut up Esposito, or _you_ don't get to be godfather," Castle said, waiting for the penny to drop.

"Godfather to wh- oh my god, are you pregnant?" Lanie squealed.

"Yep," Kate grinned. "And _that's_ why I wasn't in this morning," she said to Esposito, "we had our first scan."

"Congratulations guys, I'm so happy for you and I know Jenny will be too..in fact, Jenny will be glad to have someone to talk babies with!" Ryan said and Kate laughed.

"Tell her I'd be delighted," she said, "and I'm going to need all the tips you can give me!"

"Oh my goodness, Kate - this is amazing!" Lanie said, throwing her arms around her best friend. "Why didn't you tell me?"

"Didn't want to jinx it," Kate admitted. "Alexis was the only one who knew and that's only because-"

"Ahem," Castle interrupted with a fake cough. He didn't want everyone knowing his little girl was all grown up.

Kate rolled her eyes and whispered, "I'll tell you later," to Lanie.

"Well in that case, I forgive you for not coming in this morning," Esposito smiled. "Congrats guys, that's great news."

"Thanks, Espo," Kate smiled.

"I'm not babysitting though," he added.

"That's what you said about Sarah-Grace," Ryan said, "but the second you held her you fell in love, don't even think about denying it."

"Don't know what you're talking about," Espo denied.

"Mm, whatever, anyway - drinks tonight to celebrate? Well, orange juice for you, Kate," Ryan said.

"Sounds good, I'll invite my dad..and Martha and Alexis," Kate replied.

After agreeing on drinks, Lanie went back to the morgue with another hug for them both and Espo and Ryan went back to their latest case, promising to fill Kate and Castle in.

"I love you, Mr Castle," Kate grinned, leaning in close to her husband.

"I love you too, Mrs Castle. And this baby is going to be the best thing to happen to us," he said, pressing a kiss to her forehead.

"I'll remind you of that when he or she is screaming at 3am," she said drily, "now come on, we've got a murder to solve."

* * *

**A/N: there's probably a few factual issues in this with it being America, but I'm using English timings, where you have ultrasound scans at 12 and 20 weeks because I have no idea how it works in the states! Also, I actually wrote most of this earlier this morning but couldn't decide if I liked it or not. I'm still not sure, but I re-read it this afternoon and I think it's okay! Final chapter should be up tomorrow - Reviews make me happy :)**

**twitter - holaitsjade | tumblr - stanaabanana**


	4. Chapter 4

**A/N: so here we are - my one shot turned four shot is almost done! Thank you to everyone who had reviewed, it really means a lot! I'm thinking of writing a sequel at some point, I'll be focusing on Seeing Double for a bit, but I've been wanting to do a story where they have a kid so who knows!**

* * *

"Castle!" Kate called from the bedroom, "can you come in here please?"

"Hold on..I'm just about to beat this kid in China at-"

"Castle!" She yelled, "I'm having your baby here!"

He threw the controller onto the floor and raced into the bedroom, finding his wife stood next to the bed, bent over it with her hands resting on the mattress, a small puddle of liquid pooling at her feet.

"Oh my god," Castle said, panic rising through him. "Oh god, what do I do?"

"You've had a kid before, shouldn't I be asking you that?" She muttered. She should have known he'd lose his head the second she went into labour. "Just..help me to the bathroom. I need to pee and change out of these clothes."

"Okay, helping. I can do that...here," he held out his hands, ready to help move her. She grasped his hands and used them to help guide her to the bathroom, stripping her bottoms off and sitting on the toilet. "Well, glad you're comfortable around me," Castle said, unsure of where to look.

"Castle, you're the one that knocked me up, I think it's safe to say you've seen..everything," she gestured wildly around her body. "And let me tell you, it's going to get a hell of a lot more undignified than me peeing." She reached for the clean leggings she had kept in the bathroom for the past few weeks and Castle helped her get into them.

"Okay, you ready to go to the hospital?" He asked.

"I think so.." She whispered, "can you grab my bag?" She'd had it packed for weeks, determined to be as organised as possible for this moment - and here she was, going into labour at 39 weeks, knowing in the next time she would be back here was with her baby.

"Bag. Yep," he said, rushing off to grab it. "Okay, let's go have a baby!" He said when he returned, taking her arm and helping her towards the door.

* * *

Castle was pacing outside the delivery room, waiting for a nurse to tell him he could go in. They'd taken Kate in the minute they'd arrived saying her waters had broken, but he was banished from the room until they'd got her settled. He had a sneaky suspicion it had been Kate who had stipulated that in her birthing plan, she probably would have known he'd panic and fluster.

She'd be fine though, she was with the doctor they'd been seeing since their first scan - luckily he was working today and could be here to deliver their baby, he knew Kate felt better with familiar faces and she was bound to feel more comfortable with Dr Parker.

While he was waiting for them to get her settled, his mind flashed back to the 20 week scan and the debate they'd had over finding out the sex..

_"So, do you wanna know?" Kate asked the night before their scan._

_"Know what?" Castle muttered. They were in bed, her curled up into his side and him propped up reading a book. _

_"My views on global warming," she replied sarcastically and he could tell she was rolling her eyes. "Whether we're having a boy or a girl."_

_"Well what are they?" He said and she looked up at him. "Your views on global warming. It's a very serious matter.."_

_"Yes and so will this be if you don't answer me! I'm not making this decision on my own, Castle, and I'm not above using torture to get you to tell me!"_

_"Alright alright," he conceded, putting his book down. They'd avoided the subject until now, saying they'd talk about it 'closer to the time' - except now they were out of time. "Well, do you wanna know?"_

_"I'm not sure," she admitted. "It'd be cool, but I kinda like the idea of a surprise. Did you know with Alexis?"_

_"Are you kidding me? I was hardly even allowed near Meredith when she was pregnant, never mind knowing anything about her pregnancy."_

_"You know I'd never do that right?" She asked._

_"Of course I do, you're nothing like her. You actually want me near you, for a start."_

_"I do," she admitted, snuggling closer to him. These last few weeks, she hadn't been able to get enough of him - like that too. She was lucky he had the stamina to keep up with her, she was proving to be a nightmare. But it wasn't just sex, she constantly wanted to be close to him, snuggled up next to him even when they were at work. She'd kept it to the bare minimum for the sake of remaining professional, but she had noticed Gates turning a blind eye every now and then when she just wanted to be held. _

_"So, if you wanna know, we can know. If you don't, fine by me."_

_"So you're leaving it up to me? She asked. "Rick, this is your baby too. If you want to know then we can.."_

_"Sweetheart, all I care about is that our son or daughter is healthy. He or she is going to be so loved no matter the gender, so I honestly don't mind."_

_"Okay, so you're happy with us leaving it a surprise?"_

_"If that's what you want then yes..actually, I think a surprise is better, means we can guess for longer," he smiled and held her tightly in his arms._

_"That's settled then, we aren't finding out," she clarified. "Now..are you finished with that book? I'm getting a little bored of waiting.."_

_"You could have interrupted anytime you liked, Beckett," he chuckled, "I'm not going to deny you anything you want right now."_

* * *

"Mr Castle?" A friendly nurse said, popping her head around the door leading to Kate's room. "You can come in now, your wife is all settled."

Castle followed her back in, walking straight over to Kate who was led on the bed with plenty of pillows, strapped up to about three different monitors. "Ah, Mr Castle, Katherine tells me you're excited?"

"I am," he nodded.

"He's been like a child for weeks," Kate laughed, "ever since it could have been any day, he hasn't stopped talking about it!"

"These..machines..what are they all for?" He asked, worry masking his face.

"Oh they're nothing to worry about," the doctor reassured, "just to check baby's heartbeat and moms too, perfectly normal."

"Good," he sighed. "How are you feeling?"

"Not too bad," she smiled, "contractions are still three or so minutes apart and not too strong. And you're here now so I'm going to be fine."

"I love you," he whispered, leaning in to kiss her forehead.

"I love you too. Have you called-"

"Yes, don't worry, I called your father, mother and Alexis, and I told Lanie too, who said she'll let the boys and Gates know."

"Thank you, I don't know what I'd do without you."

"Well you wouldn't be pregnant with my daughter for a start," he teased. Despite the fact they didn't know the sex, he was convinced it was a girl - Kate, on the other hand, wasn't.

"Your _son_, you mean," she said, narrowing her eyes at him.

Dr Parker chuckled as he checked the machines for her vitals. "You two haven't decided what you think it is yet then," he said, not giving it away - as the person who had done her scans, he knew who was right.

* * *

"Oh my god Castle I'm going to kill you!" Kate groaned as she squeezed his hand once more, another contraction ripping through her.

"You've said that before," he chuckled, "more than once and you still gave in. You're doing amazing sweetheart, you're so close now."

It had been six hours since Castle had come into the room and things had been progressing nicely. Well, not so nice for Kate - she had screamed and pinched and sworn at him a lot, but he wasn't bothered. In fact, he decided he loved her more, seeing her all hot and sweaty, pushing their baby out. He was so hopelessly in love with her it was verging on ridiculous.

"That's what you said two hours ago," she spat out at him. "Oh god..I can't do this.."

"You can, Kate and you will, I promise. Just think, it's not going to be long and you're going to be holding our daughter in your arms and all of this will be forgotten."

"It's not a girl, Castle, it's a- arghhhhh.."

"That's it, Kate!" Dr Parker said from his position at the bottom of her bed. "I can see the head now, we're nearly there..two more pushes and you're done, with the next contraction, I need you to give your biggest push yet, okay? Gotta get those shoulders out.." Kate nodded and looked to Castle.

"Tell me you love me?"

"Always, Kate. I'll always love you. And you look so beautiful right now-"

"Oh shut up, Castle, I look a mess," she grumbled and he couldn't help but laugh. "Oh crap..it's coming.."

"Remember what I said, big push.."

She shouted in pain once again, but gave the biggest push she could through the contraction, Castle never stopping his steady stream of encouragement. The next thing they heard was a loud, piercing cry.

"Is that..?" She asked.

"Yep, you did it," Dr Parker grinned, cutting the umbilical cord and holding the baby up so she could see over her knees - "you have a beautiful baby girl."

"A..girl.." Kate said, "oh look at her..she's perfect!" The little girl had a bright pink face, screwed up with her cry but she was the most beautiful thing Kate had ever seen.

Dr Parker cleaned her up best he could with a towel before wrapping her in a blanket and passing her to Kate. "Oh wow..she's beautiful," Kate whispered, looking into the face of here daughter. "You were right, Castle, it is a girl!"

"And she's perfect," Castle whispered, leaning over to meet his new daughter.

"Hi baby," he said sweetly, "this is your mommy and I'm your daddy and we love you so much.."

"Have you thought of a name?" Dr Parker asked as he delivered the placenta which went unnoticed by Kate - it wasn't unusual, most mothers were so wrapped up in their baby they didn't even notice there was still more to do, it happened naturally.

"No..we haven't..we didn't know what she was so we wanted to wait.."

"Have you got any ideas?" Castle asked, still enchanted with his daughter who was currently snuggling into Kate's chest.

"I don't know..have you?"

"Well um..I always figured if we had a girl her middle name would be Johanna.." He suggested.

She looked at him in surprise. "You want her middle name to be after my mother?"

"Of course I do, Kate. She'd be so proud of you right now and I know you wish she could be here and I think she'd be honoured."

God she loved him. "Hope," she blurted out, staring down at their daughter.

"Hope?" Castle asked. "I like it if you do..why Hope?"

"Because that's what your books gave me..hope, and this baby is half you."

"It's perfect," he grinned leaning in to kiss his wife, "I'm so proud of you."

"Remember that when your daughter is waking you up in the middle of the night."

"Oh so she's my daughter now is she? Well then I guess she better come have a cuddle with her daddy.." Kate grinned and careful placed her sleeping daughter in her fathers arms.

"She looks even smaller when you're holding her," she said, tears filling her eyes and how incredible this moment was.

"Ah, so dad's having a cuddle is he?" Dr Parker said, coming back into the room.

"He is," Kate smiled. "And we've decided on a name - this is Hope Johanna Castle."

"A beautiful name for a beautiful baby. She seems fine, I'll give her another check and weigh her in a minute but she looks a healthy size, you did good."

"Thank you," Kate smiled as her baby let out the most adorable yawn. She'd never felt happier.

* * *

After Castle had had a cuddle with his daughter, Dr Parker had checked her over and sighed her, before declaring her perfectly healthy and pronouncing her weight at a bouncing 7lbs and 11oz. Hope was now sleeping her her crib next to Kate's bed, a whole three hours old. Kate had fed her when she got hungry, the little girl latching on straight away and guzzling away contentedly as Castle sat and watched, mesmerised with their baby.

"I think it's time she met the rest of her family, don't you," Kate smiled, neither her nor Castle had been able to take their eyes off of her.

"I'll get them in..your dad first?" Jim, Martha and Alexis had arrived about an hour ago, waiting to meet their new sister/granddaughter.

"Yeah, just for a minute if that's okay? And then Martha and Alexis can come in too," she smiled, she just needed a moment with her dad and Castle with Hope alone first.

"Hey, Katiebug," he dad said as he came back with Castle, "how are you doing?"

"I'm good, daddy. A little tired and sore but the whole thing was worth it," she smiled. "Wanna meet your granddaughter?"

"Of course I do!" Castle lifted her effortlessly from her crib, placing her gently in Jim's arms.

"Dad, this is Hope Johanna Castle."

"You gave her Johanna as a name?" Her father whispered.

"We did," Kate smiled. "It was Castle's idea."

"It's perfect," Jim said, "she's perfect. I'm so proud of you Katie and I know your mother would be too."

Five minutes later and Jim was still enamoured with his granddaughter. "I suppose I better give her up for a bit, where's Martha and Alexis?"

"I'll go and get them," Castle announced, pressing another kiss to Kate's head.

He returned a few moments later, closely followed by his mother and daughter. "Oh Katherine, she's perfect!" Martha said as Jim handed the baby over, cooing over the little bundle.

"Well done, Kate, I'm proud of you," Alexis said, reaching over to give her step mother a hug. "And she's beatiful, what's her name?"

Kate let Castle do the honours this time. "Her name is Hope Johanna," he announced proudly.

"It's lovely," Alexis beamed, looking over to her little sister.

Kate smiled at her now growing family, she never imagined when she first brought Castle in for questioning that she'd end up marrying him and having his baby, oh how times had changed.

After visiting with them for an hour, Hope let them all know when she was hungry, prompting them to leave Kate and Rick to it, letting Kate feed her daughter once again.

"Ryan text," Castle said, watching his wife and daughter again, "they all say they're really excited to meet her, just let them know when."

"They can come now," Kate smiled.

"Are you sure? You've had a big day?"

"I'm fine, Castle. A little tired but I'll be okay, I just want to show her off to everyone."

"Me too," he chuckled, pulling out his phone to let them know they could head over.

Half an hour later and Esposito, Ryan and Lanie arrived. "Hey guys," Kate smiled at them, "thanks for coming."

"Kate, you had a baby - of course we're going to be here!" Lanie said, "now, do I get first hold?"

"Of course," Kate said, "here.." She lifted her arms allowing Lanie to take the sleeping bundle. "She's just been fed so she should sleep for a bit."

"Look at you getting all motherly," Espo teased. "Congratulations guys," he smiled, watching Lanie with the baby.

"Jenny sends her congratulations," Ryan said, "and she can't wait to bring Sarah Grace to meet her when you're settled back home."

"Thanks, Ryan."

After Lanie had had a cuddle, she handed Hope over to Espo and Ryan, who huddled in a corner with Castle, no doubt plotting ways to stop boys from getting anywhere near her when she grew up.

"How you doing, Kate?" Lanie asked.

"Not bad..I just can't believe she's actually here!"

"Doesn't seem real, does it?" Lanie asked, "Castle looks good with her."

"You've met Alexis, you know how good a dad he is."

"That's true and you're going to make an amazing mother," Lanie grinned, squeezing Kate's hand.

They all had another cuddle each before leaving Kate and Rick to bond with their new baby.

"I love you, Kate, so much," Castle said as their baby slept next to them.

"I love you too," she replied. "And we're so lucky..we have a beautiful baby girl.."

"She is pretty perfect isn't she..but then she is half you."

"Yep and her creativity and taste for weird food is going to come from her daddy."

"Lucky girl really, isn't she."

"That she is. Thank you, Castle. I know I was a little hard on you when I was in labour but I couldn't have done that without you," Kate said squeezing her husbands hand.

"Always."

* * *

**A/N: your reviews on the ending would be greatly appreciated, along with thoughts on writing a sequel or not :)**

**twitter - holaitsjade | tumblr - stanaabanana**


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